Well, let me just start by saying that ive never owned anything diesel. Lots and lots of truck and cars but i got my first diesel and dont know much/understand it well yet. Its a 96 ram 3500 2wd Dually.

the truck is completely stock. Whats the cheapest way to bump it up to 450hp? Why should you look at your exhaust temp? i mean, who cares how hot the exhaust is coming out as long as your engines temp is fine???

I really need some help here, cause i just dont get it.

 

You have a the holy grail of engines. All mechanical mods. I'm sure diesel demon will be by soon to help ya out. Basically what your looking at is a fuel plate, injectors, turbo, exhaust and intake, and of course the drivetrain will need to be built up to handle it. Your gonna need gauges to make sure everytihng is going well. Exhaust temp so you don't burn the whole engine down, fuel pressure, trans temp, boost, are all good gauges to have.

 

I don't know what you consider cheap, but it won't be to get to 450 hp.

 

Well, your exhaust valves and turbo fins are REALLY gonna care. Start pushing over 1350* for any extended period of time and you'll be melting parts.

Engine coolant temp is only one part of the equation. The engine cooling on these things is way overbuilt, so that's not much of a concern.

Before you start modding ANYTHING, get a set of gauges. Find out what your baseline numbers are and then start adding parts.

Getting that puppy up into the 450 range isn't gonna be cheap. It's gonna be building a lot of heat with all hte fuel you'll be throwing at it. That means bigger intercooler, turbo, exhaust etc.

Have fun.

 

Thanks for all the great info guys. I feel like a kid with a new toy. I have much to learn about the parts and setups and i will do an extensive search.

Thanks again............................